Plastic laminating apparatus

ABSTRACT

A plastic laminating apparatus for laminating plastic sheet material to a countertop core having a backsplash attached at right angles thereto during a single pass through the apparatus. The apparatus consists of a plurality of longitudinally spaced work stations through which the work is successively moved for progressively shaping and adhering the plastic laminate to the work, such work being guided through the apparatus by receipt of a downwardly projecting portion from the work in a guide track extending the entire length of the apparatus. A back die bends the laminate to conform to the general shape of the backsplash and countertop after heating, and fingers and pressure rolls are used to progressively bend and press the projecting edges of the laminate into firm contact with the edges of the countertop and backsplash. Floating cutters are also used to trim the excess laminate material extending beyond the countertop and backsplash edges, and such excess material may be picked up by a suction blower or removed by a rotary brush prior to passage through final pressure rolls.

5 Sheets-Sheet l G. W. LOY

PLASTIC LAMINATING APPARATUS Sept. 12, 1972 Original Filed Dec. 15,

QZCRN MOON INVENTOR GEORGE W. LOY

ATTORNEYS a a mm 3 an 5 ZOPPFPm wzEmou zghenrm xuo! Sept. 12, 1972 G. w.LOY 3,690,995

PLASTIC LAMINATING APPARATUS Original Filed Dec. 15, 1969 5 Sheets-Sheet2 55 38 INVENTOR Q, GEORGE w. L0) 28 25 52 BY F 7 aw ml/ zmuz Sept. 12,1972 G. w. LQY

PLASTIC LAMINATING APPARATUS Original Filed Dec. 15, 1969 5 Sheets-Sheet3 INVENTOR GEORGE w. L0)

Sept. 12, 1972 G. W. LOY 3,690,995

PLASTIC LAMINATING APPARATUS Original Filed Dec. 15, 1969 5 Sheets-Sheet4 INVENTOR GEORGE W. L0)

ATTORNEYS Sept. 12, 1972 G. w. LOY 3,690,995

PLASTIC LAMINATING APPARATUS Original Filed Dec. 15, 1969 s Sheets-Sheets 1 1 23 E A U 3 3 l5 l8 y 5 INVENTOR GEORGE W L0) ATTORNEYS UnitedStates Patent Int. Cl. 1532b 3/04 U.S. Cl. 156-478 5 Claims ABSTRACT OFTHE DISCLOSURE A plastic laminating apparatus for laminating plasticsheet material to a countertop core having a backsplash attached atright angles thereto during a single pass through the apparatus. Theapparatus consists of a plurality of longitudinally spaced work stationsthrough which the work is successively moved for progressively shapingand adhering the plastic laminate to the work, such work being guidedthrough the apparatus by receipt of a downwardly projecting portion fromthe work in a guide track extending the entire length of the apparatus.A back die bends the laminate to conform to the general shape of thebacksplash and countertop after heating, and fingers and pressure rollsare used to progressively bend and press the projecting edges of thelaminate into firm contact with the edges of the countertop andbacksplash. Floating cutters are also used to trim the excess laminatematerial extending beyond the countertop and backsplash edges, and suchexcess material may be picked up by a suction blower or removed by arotary brush prior to passage through final pressure rolls.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS This application is a divisionof my copending US. application Ser. No. 885,014, filed Dec. 15, 1969,now U.S. Pat. No. 3,580,787.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION The present invention relates generally asindicated to plastic laminating apparatus, particularly for use inlaminating countertop cores with backsplash afiixed thereto in the finaldesired relation during a single pass through the apparatus.

Heretofore, it has been the usual practice to cover countertops andsimilar articles, ordinarily made of plywood or particle wood, with aprotective and decorative laminate sheet of a suitable thermoplastic orthermosetting plastic material. The countertop generally includes a fiatworking surface to which the plastic laminate is bonded with the edgeportions of the laminate extending outwardly beyond one or both edges ofthe core to permit further bonding of the laminate material to such coreedges after heating the laminate edge portions and bending them toconform to the shape of the core edges in a progressive manner, as shownand described, for example, in US. Pats. 3,296,052 and 3,296,056.

When a backsplash was desired along the back edge of the countertop, thebacksplash was usually covered with a plastic laminate in a similarmanner but in a separate operation and subsequently attached to thecountertop. This had the disadvantage that a crack was left exposedwhere the backsplash contacted the countertop, and two separatelaminating operations and a subsequent bonding operation were alsorequired to complete the assembly, which greatly increased both themanufacturing time and cost of the article.

A countertop manufacturing procedure has previously been devised foreliminating the crack between the backsplash and countertop by makingthe backsplash and countertop from a single fiat piece of core materialand bonding a sheet of laminate to both parts at the same time prior toshaping. However, this necessitated subsequent cutting of the corematerial from underneath to separate the countertop from the backsplashand reheating of the laminate to permit bending at the joint between thetwo parts, followed by insertion of a cove stick or the like between thecountertop and backsplash on the back side to retain the backsplash atwith respect to the countertop, which increased rather than decreasedthe manufacturing time and expense. This procedure also sometimesresulted in the backsplash not being exactly at right angles to thecountertop, and there was always the risk of damaging the laminatematerial during the subsequent cutting and bending operations.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION With the foregoing in mind, it is a principalobject of this invention to provide apparatus for laminating plasticsheet material to a countertop core and backsplash fixed thereto in thefinal desired position during a single pass through the apparatus, at asubstantial savings in time and reduction in cost.

Another object is to provide such an apparatus with novel guide meansfor guiding the countertop and backsplash core through the apparatuswhile maintaining proper orientation of the core at each of the laminateheating, forming, and bonding stations.

Still another object is to provide such an apparatus with novel indexingmechanism by which the laminate sheet material is properly located onthe core prior to passage through the apparatus.

A further object is to provide such an apparatus with a novel formingdie for back bending the laminate sheet material to conform to thegeneral right angle configuration of the countertop and backsplash afterheating.

Another object is to provide such an apparatus with ripple bars formaintaining proper edge position of the laminate sheet material duringheating so that the edges are uniformly heated throughout their length.

A further object is to provide such an apparatus with floating cuttersfor trimming the excess laminate material from the edges of thebacksplash and countertop cores after shaping and bonding the laminatematerial thereto.

Yet another object is to provide such an apparatus which readilyaccommodates diiierent sizes of countertop and backsplash cores.

These and other objects of the present invention may be achieved byproviding apparatus with a plurality of longitudinally spaced workstations through which the work is successively moved for progressivelyshaping and bonding the plastic laminate to the workpiece. The firststation may be an indexing station at which the laminate is accuratelyplaced on the work, and the apparatus has a guide track extending theentire length of the apparatus which receives a downwardly projectingportion on the work for accurately guiding the work through theapparatus. Ripple bars prevent the edges of the laminate material fromcurling when heat is applied to obtain more uniform heating of thelaminate material, and a back die is used to bend the laminate toconform to the generally right angle configuration of the backsplash andcountertop in a single operation. Forming rods and pressure rollsprogressively bend and bond the projecting edges of the laminate to thefront and top edges of the countertop and backsplash, respectively, andadditional pressure rolls firmly adhere the laminate to the flatportions of the countertop and backsplash. Cooling fans may also be usedto aid in cooling the laminate material after heating and shaping.

Floating cutters may be used for trimming any excess laminate materialprojecting beyond the backsplash and countertop edges, which excessmaterial may be picked up by a suction blower, or a rotating brush maybe used to remove such excess material from the laminate prior topassage between final pressure rolls.

To the accomplishment of the foregoing and related ends, the invention,then, comprises the features hereinafter fully described andparticularly pointed out in the claims, the following description andthe annexed drawings setting forth in detail a certain illustrativeembodiment of the invention, this being indicative, however, of but oneof the various ways in which the principle of the invention may beemployed.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS In the annexed drawings:

FIG. 1 is a diagrammatic top plan view of a preferred form of plasticlaminating apparatus constructed in accordance with this invention shownin its entirety, with legends designating each of the work stationsthrough which the work desirably passes during the laminating process;

FIG. 2 is a diagrammatic side elevation view of the apparatus of FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is an enlarged fragmentary end elevation view of the apparatus ofFIG. 2 as seen from the plane of the line 33 at the left end thereofadjacent the index stastation;

FIGS. 4 through 17 are schematic diagrams showing progressively thevarious steps which are followed in laminating a countertop andbacksplash afiixed thereto in the final desired position during a singlepass through the apparatus of the present invention; and

FIG. 18 is a fragmentary end elevation view of a completely laminatedcountertop and backsplash made using the apparatus of this invention.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT Referring now in detail to theannexed drawings and first of all to FIGS. 1 and 2, there isschematically shown a preferred form of apparatus 1 constructed inaccordance with this invention, including a plurality of work stations2-10. At the left end of the apparatus 1 is an index station 2 where thework is initially placed either by hand or automatically, and a sheet ofplastic laminating material is initially adhered to the work, in amanner to be subsequently fully described. From the index station 2 thework is advanced to the forming station 3 where the laminating materialis heated and die formed to conform to the general configuration of thework, which desirably consists of a countertop having a backsplashextending at right angles thereto.

Now the work is ready to be continuously progressively moved through theremainder of the apparatus 1, which generally comprises a pressingstation 4 where a series of pressure rolls are used to firmly adhere thelaminate to the work; an edge heating station 5 where the edges of thelaminate material are heated; an edge formiing station 6 where theheated edges are progressively bent and pressed into contact with theedges of the work; a cooling and pressing station 7 where the laminatematerial is cooled to permit it to set and additional pressure rollspress the laminate against the work; an edge trimming station 8 wherethe excess laminate material projecting beyond the edges of the work isremoved and the resulting debris is desirably picked up by an overheadexhaust; a brush cleaning station 9 where any remaining debris may bebrushed from the laminate material covering the countertop; and a pinchroll station 10 which finally presses the laminate material to thecountertop core prior to passing onto a take-off conveyor 11 for removalfrom the apparaus.

As clearly shown in FIGS. 3 and 18, the work, generally designated bythe numeral 14, desirably consists of a countertop core 15 andbacksplash 16 preassembled in the final desired relation with thebacksplash 16 and countertop 15 extending at right angles to each otherand the backsplash 16 having a drop edge 17 extending downwardly belowthe bottom side 18 of the countertop 15, for a purpose to besubsequently described. The width of the countertop section 15 andvertical height of the backsplash section 16 may be varied as desired,and the overall length of the work 15 may also be varied withoutpresenting any problems in handling by the apparatus 1 of the presentinvention. Along the upper edge 19 of the backsplash 16 there is a capmolding 20 having a rounded shoulder 21, and along the front edge 22 ofthe countertop 15 there is a front molding 23 which is desirably raisedslightly above the upper side 24 of the countertop to prevent water fromrunning off the front edge during use. Plywood or particle wood are themost common materials from which the backsplash and countertop cores andmolding strips are made, and all of these parts may be secured togetherin any suitable manner, as by providing tongue and groove connectionstherebetween and using a suitable adhesive.

The work 14 is guided through the apparatus 1 by placement of thebacksplash drop edge 17 of the work in a guide track 25 extendinglengthwise of the apparatus adjacent the back side thereof (see, forexample, FIGS. 1 and 3). The guide track 25 desirably consists of a pairof longitudinally extending guide rails 26 and 27 which are supported inclosely spaced parallel relation on the main support frame 28 to providea gap 29 therebetween for receipt of the backsplash drop edge 17. In theregion of the index station 2, a plurality of longitudinally spacedhorizontally disposed rollers 30 are provided on the horizontal flangeportion 31 of the guide rail 26 which project inwardly beyond the flangeportion 31 for rolling engagement with the back side of the drop edge17, and similar longitudinally spaced rollers 32 may be verticallydisposed on the vertical flange portion 33 of the guide rail 27 whichproject upwardly beyond the vertical flange portion 33 for rollingengagement with the underneath side of the countertop portion 15 of thework. A further guide rail 34 extending lengthwise along the front ofthe machine parallel to the guide rails 26 and 27 has a plurality oflongitudinally spaced vertically disposed rollers 35 thereon whichprovide additional rolling support for the underneath side of thecountertop core 15. An endless drive chain 38 running the full length ofthe apparatus carries detachable dogs 39 which engage the work foradvancing the work through the various work stations while being guidedby the guide track 25 as aforesaid.

For a more clear understanding of the details of construction andoperation of the apparatus 1, reference will now be made to FIGS. 3through 17, which schematically illustrate the various operationsperformed on the work 14 at each of the work stations. In FIG. 3, thework 14 is shown at the index station 2 with the countertop portion 15supported from beneath by the support rails 27 and 34 and the backsplashdrop edge 17 received in the guide track 25. Preferably, the upwardlyand forwardly facing surfaces of the work are pre-sprayed with asuitable heat activated contact bond cement prior to placement of thework at the index station, but it will be apparent that the cement maybe applied to the work while at the index station 2 if desired. Adjacentthe front 40 of the index station 2 is a longitudinally extendingindexing bar 41 supported by a pair of air cylinders 42 which whenretracted cause the indexing bar 41 to press against the front molding23 of the work 14 to lock the work in place against the guide rail 26.Teflon bumpers 43 or the like may be provided on the indexing bar 41 forcontacting the work without sticking to the cement coating.

With the work 14 properly locked in place as aforesaid, a plurality ofspacing strips 44 may be placed along the upper side of the countertop15 to permit proper positioning of a sheet 45 of suitable plasticlaminating material which has been pre-sprayed with the contact bondcement over the work 14 without actually contacting the work as shown inFIG. 4. The indexing bar 41 is desirably an angle bar which provides agauge for locating the front edge 46 of the plastic laminate sheet 45outwardly beyond the front molding 23 of the work a distance sufficientto provide enough material for covering the front molding duringsubsequent operations to be later described. Extending lengthwise of theindex station 2 adjacent the back side 47 thereof is a Teflon coveredrod 48 supported by vertical supports 49 from the main frame 28 abovethe backsplash 16 WhlCh initially maintains the plastic laminate sheet45 out of contact with the top of the backsplash, as also shown in FIG.4.

The spacing strips 44 project outwardly beneath the indexing bar 41 sothat when the plastic lam nating sheet 45 is in the proper desiredposition, the spacing strlps 44 may be removed by pulling the stripsfrom between the laminate sheet and countertop core from the front ofthe apparatus and the plastic sheet is lightly pressed into contact withthe countertop core to hold the plastrcsheet 1n place. Next the aircylinders 42 are extended to disengage the indexing bar 41 from thefront mold ng 23 and plastic sheet 45, and the work 14 with plasticsheet adhered thereto is indexed to the forming statlon 3 by advancingthe work along the guide rails 27 and 34 by hand or by engagement of adetachable dog 39 on the drive chain 38 with the trailing end 50 of thework, as desired. During such movement, the plastic sheet 45 shdes offthe end of the rod 48 into contact with the top of the backsplash.

When the work 14 is in position at the forming station 3 as shown inFIG. 5, movement of the work is stopped, and a tip bar 51 locatedbeneath the work 14 between the drive chain 38 and front guide rail 34is ralsed by actuation of a pair of air cylinders 52 supported by themain frame 28 to tip the work 14 at a slight angle to the FIG. 6position. This locks the work in the guide track 25 and providesclearance for pivoting a forming d1e into the corner 53 between thebacksplash 16 and countertop 15 as described hereafter. To obtain moreaccurate positioning of the work 14 at the forming station 3, ahorizontal slide bar 54 may be substituted for the rollers 30 on thesupport rail 26, and a series of longitudinally spaced vertical spacers55 may be provided on the support rail 27 in place of the verticalrollers 32.

In the region of the forming station 3 the main support frame 28 hasplural overhead supports 58 to which is pivoted a heater support frame59 for swinging movement of an infrared heater 60 from the retracted orinoperative position shown in FIG. to the operating position shown inFIG. 6 directly over the area of the laminate sheet 45 which is to bedie formed to conform to the right angle configuration of the backsplashand countertop after heating. An operating lever 61 may be provided formoving the heater 60 by hand between the inoperative and operativepositions, with a suitable toggle mechanism, not shown, desirably beingprovided for releasably retaining the heater in either position. Theheating cycle may, of course, be varied depending upon the type ofplastic material being used, but once determined, an automatic timer maybe used for controlling the heat cycle. In the preferred form of theinvention illustrated in the drawings, a heating cycle of 30 seconds isused to bring the material temperature to approximately 350 -F.

To prevent the back edge 64 of the plastic sheet 45 from curling towardthe heater 60 during the heating cycle, a ripple bar 65 may be provided,pivotally mounted at its ends to the main frame 28 at the back of themachine by lever arms 66. Vertical extensions 67 on the lever arms 66are adapted to be engaged by rollers 68 carried by the heater supportframe 59 for movement of the ripple bar 65 into and out of positionsimultaneously with the heater 60 movements. During movement of theheater to the operative position shown in FIG. 6, the weight of theripple bar maintains the vertical extensions 67 in contact with therollers 68 on heater support frame 59. The ripple bar 65 continues tomove in a generally clockwise direction as seen in FIG. 6 with themovement of the heater 60 until the downward projections 72 from theripple bar lever arms 66 engage a stop 73 on the main frame 28 forproperly locating the ripple bar 65 in position overlying the back edgeof the sheet of laminate material thus to retain the back edge in place.The heater 60 moves still further to the final desired operatingposition shown in FIG. 6, after which the heater 60 is ener gized tocause uniform heating of the plastic material in the region directlybeneath the heater.

Following the heating cycle, operating lever 61 is again actuated toretract the heater 60 to the inoperative position. During such upwardswinging movement of the heater, the roller 68 on the heater supportframe 59 engages the ripple bar lever arm extensions 67 also to retractthe ripple bar 65 to its inoperative position shown in FIGS. 5 and 7.

Now the plastic laminate sheet 45 is ready to be dieshaped using anelongated forming die which is pivotally mounted to the front of theforming station 3 by plural support beams 71. A plurality of aircylinders 72 pivotally connected to the overhead supports 58 may beprovided for raising and lowering the forming die 70 into and out ofengagement with the plastic laminate. A pressure plate 75 carried by theforming die support beams 71 engages the plastic laminate sheet prior toengagement by the forming die to hold the laminate sheet against thework during the forming operation to prevent air from becoming entrappedbeneath the laminate and pushing the laminate away from the work. Thepressure plate 75 is shown supported on the forming die support beams 71by adjustable yokes 76 which permit continued movement of the formingdie 70 toward the work after engagement of the pressure plate 75 withthe plastic laminate sheet. Support beams 77 provide a pivotal mount forthe pressure plate 75 to the front of the main frame 28.

As clearly shown in FIGS. 6 and 7, the forming die 70 is of angularcross section, somewhat less than 90, with a slight radius along theinner edge 78 thereof to permit pressing of the laminate material intothe corner 53 between the backsplash 16 and countertop 15 during the dieforming operation. Moreover, it will also be apparent that the slighttilting of the work 14 at an angle as previously described permits theforming die 70 to clear the backsplash 16 during downward swingingmovement into the corner 53. Preferably, the forming die 70 is comprisedof two strips 79 and 80, desirably made of wood such as birch, securedto an angle bar 81. The advantage in using wood for the die strips isthat wood is not a conductor of heat.

After the die forming operation, the forming die ;70 is retracted to theFIGS. 5 and 6 position, retracting the pressure plate 75 with it, andthe tip bar 51 is lowered to the FIG. 5 position to permit reengagementof the work with the front guide rail 34 for supporting the work duringmovement through the suceeding work stations 4 through 10 as the work ispulled along by a detachable dog 39 on the drive chain. 38. The plasticlaminate sheet 45 now generally conforms to the right angleconfiguration of the backsplash 16 and countertop 15, with oppositeedges 81 and 82 of the laminate sheet extending in planes 90 to eachother beyond the respective molding strips 23 and 1LgtiGon7thecountertop 15 and backsplash 16, as shown in From the forming station 3,the work :14 is progressively moved through the pressing station 4-while the plastic laminate sheet 45 is still hot to facilitate pressingof the plastic laminate sheet into tight contact with the countertop 15and backsplash 16 using rubber pressure rolls 85 and 86 as shown inFIGS. 8 and 9, respectively. Both the countertop pressure rolls 85 andbacksplash pressure rolls 86 are preferably spring loaded and adjustableto permit application of a uniform pressure to the laminate material,and the pressure rolls are desirably located as close as practical tothe corner 53 of the work to press the laminate material which was notcontacted by the forming die 70 during the die forming operation intofirm contact with the work. Two sets of backsplash pressure rolls 86 aredesirably provided, one set vertically spaced from the other. The lowerpressure rolls 86 are used for pressing the laminate material againstbacksplashes which are relatively short as shown in solid lines in FIG.9, whereas both pressure rolls 86 are used to press the laminate againsthigher backsplashes as shown in phantom lines in FIG. 9. The same orseparate mounts 90 may be provided for each pair of vertically spacedpressure rolls 86, and two sets of skid bars 91 and 92 are alsodesirably provided, one located higher than the other adjacent the backof the pressing station 4 for providing the necessary support forbacksplashes of different heights during pressure engagement by thepressure rolls 86.

Next the work 14 is progressively moved through the edge heating stationwhere a plurality of infrared heaters 95 and 96 supported adjacent theback and front of the apparatus progressively heat the projecting edges81 and 82 of the laminate sheet material 45 which are at 90 to eachother. Ripple bars 97 and 98 carried by the respective heaters '95 and96 project outwardly at an angle adjacent the laminate edges and preventsuch edges from curling toward the heaters during the heating operation,resulting in more uniform heating of the laminate edges. The ripple bars97 and 98 are desirably made of asbestos or other similar heat resistantmaterial rather than metal to avoid scorching of the laminate material.Additional pressure rolls 99 may also be provided in the region of theedge heating station 5 to assist in firmly adhering the laminate sheetmaterial to the work.

After leaving the edge heating station 5, the work 14 immediately entersthe edge forming station 6 where a pair of angularly disposed formingbars or fingers 105 and 106 positioned adjacent the front and back ofthe apparatus progressively turn the projecting edges 81 and 82 of thelaminate sheet material over the front molding 23 and backsplash capmolding 20 as schematically shown in FIGS. 11 and 12. The progressivelybent projecting edge portions 81 and 82 are then intermittently pressedinto contact with the front and cap moldings 23 and 20 by a series ofadjustable rubber forming rolls 107 and 108 mounted in spaced apartrelation along the front and back of the apparatus. As illustrated, theforming rolls 107 have vertical axes and are spring loaded in ahorizontal direction for urgin the forming rolls 107 into engagementwith the front face of the front molding 23, whereas the forming rolls108 have horizontal axes and are spring loaded downwardly for urging theforming rolls into engagement with the top of the cap molding 20.Additional pressure rolls, not shown, may also be provided for pressingthe laminating material against the top surface of countertop and frontsurface of backsplash 16, since the previous heating operation has atendency to reactivate the contact bond cement used to bond the laminatesheet material to the work.

Next the work 14 continues to move through the cooling and pressingstation 7 where fans 109 and 110 located adjacent the front and back ofthe apparatus direct cooling air against the laminate edges to promotesetting of the plastic while additional pressure rolls 111 and 112disposed at right angles to each other adjacent such front and backcontinue to press the laminate material against the front molding 23 andcap molding as shown in FIG. 13. Additional pressure rolls .115 are alsoprovided which press the plastic laminate material to the countertop 15along the front edge 22 thereof to form a die line 116 where the frontmolding 23 is attached to the countertop 15, creating a raised portion117 which prevents water from running off the countertop when in use.

Any overhang 120 and 121 of the plastic laminate material 45 extendingdownwardly below the bottom of the front molding 23 and outwardly beyondthe back of the cap molding 20 after the edge forming and pressingoperations may be removed during passage of the work through the edgetrimming station 8 where cutters 122 and 123 are mounted adjacent thefront and back of the apparatus as shown schematically in FIGS. 1 and 2and in greater detail in FIGS. 14 and 15. The front edge cutter 122generally comprises a stationary base plate 124 to which is pivotallyconnected a floating support plate or head 125 for vertical move-mentabout a horizontal pivot 126 toward and away from the bottom of thefront molding 23. The support plate 125 is urged upwardly by a spring127 disposed between the plates 124 and 125 and an adjustable bolt 128extending through the spring and plates limits the extent of such upwardmovement of the floating support plate 125. Carried by the floatingsupport plate 125 is a guide shoe 12 9 adapted to engage the underneathside of the front molding 23. Also carried by the support plate 125 is ajournal mount 130 having a horizontal shaft 131 extending perpendicularto the front edge of the work on which is mounted a carbide cutter blade132.

The size of the cutter blade 132 is such that its periphery projects thesame vertical extent as the guide shoe 129, and the cutter blade 132 isin longitudinal alignment with the front bottom edge of the frontmolding 23. Holddown rolls 135 carried by the main frame 28 pressagainst the front edge of the work to maintain the bottom of the frontmolding 23 against the guide shoe 129, whereby regardless of theconfiguration of the bottom edge of the front molding 23, the cutterblade 132 is caused to follow such surface and neatly trim the overhang120 from the front molding.

The back edge cutter 123 is of a similar construction, but the floatingcutter head or plate 137 has a vertical pivot 138 and is urged towardthe back side of the cap molding 20 by a spring 139 disposed between thecutter head 137 and a fixed support plate 140. A guide shoe 141 andcutter blade 142 are also carried by the cutter head 137, but the cutterblade has a vertical support shaft 143 instead of a horizontal supportshaft, and is in longitudinal alignment with the upper back edge of thecap molding 20. Pressure rolls 144 carried by the main frame 128maintain the cap molding 20 from moving forward out of contact with theguide shoe 141, whereby the guide shoe 141 and cutter blade 142 followthe contour of the cap molding 20 to trim the backsplash overhang 121,thus assuring a neat finish.

A suction blower 146, shown schematically in FIG. 2, may be providedoverhead for removing the debris resulting from the edge trimmingoperation, and a rotating brush 147 shown schematically in FIGS. 1, 2and 16 may also be provided at the brush cleaning station 9 for cleaningthe countertop prior to passage through the pinch roll station 10, ifdesired. The brush 147 may be driven off the same drive for the mainconveyor chain 38 or be independently driven.

As clearly shown in FIGS. 1 and 2 and schematically illustrated in FIGS.16 and 17, the pinch roll station 10 desirably consists of two pairs ofvertically spaced rubber covered rolls 150 and 151. One pair of rolls150 is preferably shorter than the other pair 151 for use with differentwidth countertops. The shorter pair of rolls 150 is for vanity topswhich are usually approximately 22% inches wide, and the longer pair 151are for standard sink tops which are usually approximately 25 incheswide.

When a vanity top is being processed, the longer rolls 151 are movedapart and only the shorter pair of rolls 15 are used to firmly press theplastic laminate to the flat part of the top as shown schematically insolid lines in FIG. 17. However, when a standard sink top is beingprocessed, the longer pair of rolls 151 are pressed against the work asshown in phantom lines in FIG. 17, and the shorter rolls 150 are alsodesirably used. Air cylinders 155 may be mounted at opposite ends ofeach of the rolls 151 for moving the journal mounts 156 for each of therolls along vertical guideways 157 toward and away from each other,whereas only the top roll 150 of the first pair of rolls need be mountedfor vertical movement to vary the pressure applied by the rolls 150against the work, as shown in FIG. 2.

After passing through the pinch roll station 10, the work is in thefinished form illustrated in FIG. 18, and passes onto a take-offconveyor 11 where the work may be removed or guided somewhere else forfurther processing. The completed countertop with backsplash attachedthereto may then be cut to any desired length and mitered right or leftor kept straight, as desired.

From the foregoing, it can now be seen that the apparatus 1 of thepresent invention, which may have an overall length of from 60 to 70feet, applies a plastic laminate sheet to a countertop and backsplashalready preassembled in the final desired relation during a single passthrough the apparatus, without requiring additional operations to beperformed to the work after exiting from the apparatus. In actualpractice, it has been found that a preassembled countertop andbacksplash may be completely covered with a plastic laminate using suchapparatus within 40 to 60 seconds, and only one man is required tooperate the apparatus. In contrast, it previously took from six to eightminutes and two men to form a completed countertop with backsplashattached thereto using previous known apparatus in which the countertopand backsplash are first laminated in the flattened condition andsubsequently cut and reformed to secure the backsplash in the finaldesired relation at 90 with respect to the countertop.

The unique guide track which guides the work through the apparatus alsoassures proper orientation of the work with respect to the equipment ateach of the operating stations, and the apparatus may also be readilyadjusted to accommodate countertops of different widths. Since thebacksplash is always maintained in the same general longitudinal path bythe guide track, only the equipment which operates on the front edge ofthe countertop core need be adjustable, and this is readily accomplishedby mounting the front edge heater 96, front edge forming finger 105 andpressure rolls 107, 111, front edge cooling blowers 109 and front edgecutter 122. on a common bed plate 160 for lateral movement toward andaway from the guide track 25 as shown schematically in FIG. 1. A pair ofscrew shafts 161, 162 threadedly engaging the bed plate 160 andconnected together by a chain 163 permit adjustment of the bed plate byrotation of one of the screw shafts. Slight variations in the height ofthe backsplash may also be readily accommodated for by making slightvertical adjustments in the equipment which acts on the top edge of thebacksplash.

The provision of two sets of vertically spaced pressure rolls 86 andvertically spaced skid bars 91 and 92 at the pressing station 4 alreadyallows for some variation in the vertical height of the backsplash.Where additional vertical adjustment is desired, such equipment may bemounted on a vertically movable bed plate similar to the horizontallymovable bed plate shown in FIG. 1. The use of ripple bars for obtaininguniform heating of the laminate material and floating cutters fortrimming the overhang also results in increased quality of the workproduced by the apparatus of the present invention.

'1, therefore, particularly point out and distinctly claim as myinvention:

1. Die forming apparatus for back bending heated plastic laminatingmaterial to conform to the right angle configuration of a workpiecehaving a horizontal portion and a back portion at substantially rightangles thereto comprising die forming means mounted for pivotal swingingmovement between operative and inoperative position in and out ofengagement with the workpiece, and means for tipping the workpiece at anangle prior to such swinging movement of said die forming means from theinoperative to the operative position to provide a clearance betweensaid die forming means and the back portion of such workpiece and permitsaid die forming means to closely engage the corner between the backportion and horizontal portion of such workpiece.

2. The apparatus of claim '1 wherein said means for tipping theworkpiece at an angle comprises a tip bar beneath the horizontal portionof the workpiece spaced from the back portion thereof, and cylindermeans for raising and lowering said tip bar into and out of engagementwith such horizontal portion.

3. The apparatus of claim 1 wherein said die forming means comprises apair of strips of wood secured to an angle bar having an included angleslightly less than 4. The apparatus of claim 1 further comprising apivotally mounted pressure plate carried by said die forming means forengagement with the plastic laminating material prior to engagement bysaid die forming means and removal therewith, said pressure platepreventing air from becoming entrapped beneath the plastic laminatingmaterial during the die forming operation.

5. The apparatus of claim 4 further comprising means for permittingcontinued movement of said die forming means toward such workpiece afterengagement of said pressure plate with the plastic laminating material.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 3,000,428 9/1961 Hansen et al.156-482 3,392,074 7/1968 Barton 156-477 R EDWARD G. WHITBY, PrimaryExaminer US. 01. X.R.

